1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to an overshoe designed to fit over conventional shoes, and in particular, an overshoe for replacing conventional rental shoes required by operators of bowling alleys facilities.
2. Description of the Related Art
As is well known, bowling is basically an indoor sport that utilizes expensive bowling surfaces which are usually formed of hardwood and a synthetic material or the like and includes an approach portion that is traveled on extensively by bowlers. Due to the expensive nature of these bowling alleys and the desirability to maintain the alleys in an immaculate condition and so as to minimize bowling differences between alleys, certain rules and/or regulations have been established by the operators of bowling facilities. In particular, most bowling facilities require that the users of the facilities wear a shoe which will not mark, damage, or cause undue wear to the bowling alleys, and in particular, the approach portions of the alleys.
In response to these requirements, some frequent bowlers have purchased shoes that are specifically designed for bowling. However, occasional bowlers, which constitute a significant portion of the market for bowling facilities, rely on the supply of rental shoes maintained by the operators of the bowling facility. Typically, the bowling facilities rent these shoes to any user who does not have proper shoes for bowling. As would be expected, this requires the owner of the bowling facility to maintain a large supply of these specialized shoes in various sizes and in men""s and women""s styles. As such, the casual bowler is almost sure to be forced to wear a shoe which has been worn previously by others. Such shoes, in many instances, do not fit as comfortably as the user""s conventional shoes. Additionally, the bowling facility may have only a limited number of a particular size of bowling shoe, thus forcing some users to wear rental shoes that are too large or too small.
In order to minimize the spreading of any foot diseases and minimize the objections of the casual bowler in wearing shoes previously worn by others, the proprietors of bowling facilities sanitize the rental shoes between uses by different people. An antibacterial aerosol spray is typically used to sanitize such rental shoes.
In order to withstand the repeated use of these shoes by different users, such rental shoes are typically constructed with an all-leather upper and a thick outsole. This construction translates into a high cost for maintaining an adequate supply of rental shoes. Additionally, the antibacterial cleaner repeatedly applied to these shoes causes the shoes to deteriorate more quickly. Thus, bowling rental shoes deteriorate more quickly than a shoe which is not subjected to repeated applications of antibacterial cleaners.
In order to provide bowling facility operators with an alternative to maintaining a supply of conventional bowling shoes for rental purposes, several designs of bowling overshoes to be worn over a conventional shoe have been proposed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,609,888 issued to Rickman discloses a bowling overshoe constructed from a toe cup portion and a heel cup portion, both of which are constructed of leather, and an elastic member connecting the toe cup and heel cup portions together. The toe and heel cup portions each include one adjustable strap so as to accommodate different shoe sizes. In particular, the heel cup portion includes a single strap arranged to extend over the vamp portion of a user""s shoe and an adjustable toe strap which extends over the portion of a user""s shoe covering the user""s toes.
Recently, certain bowling facilities have begun to hold special events within the facility, referred to as xe2x80x9cglow-bowlingxe2x80x9d. A glow-bowling event is unique in that bowlers are allowed to bowl in partial darkness with music and light shows similar to that provided in a nightclub including xe2x80x9cblack lightsxe2x80x9d which cause florescent materials to emit light energy and thus appear to glow. Some bowlers have been known to wear florescent clothing during such events. For safety and other reasons, certain areas of the facility are lighted so that bowlers can safely walk through the facility. However, in some facilities, even the approach portion of the bowling lanes are left in darkness, illuminated with only black lights.
Despite the development of several alternatives to rental shoes, bowling facilities continue to maintain large supplies of conventional rental shoes for use by their patrons. Thus, a need exists for an improved bowling overshoe for replacing conventional overshoes.
One aspect of the present invention includes the realization that known alternatives for conventional bowling shoes can be inadequate. For example, as noted above, one known bowling overshoe is constructed of heel cup and toe cup portions, each having a single strap for tightening around a user""s shoe. It has been found that such a design is perceived to be inadequate for safety and comfort reasons.
For example, in order for a user to safely install such an overshoe onto a conventional shoe, the straps must be sufficiently tightened to prevent the overshoe from slipping off the user""s shoe, not only during bowling, but under any situation. In particular, a user wearing such an overshoe might accidentally slip or trip while wearing the overshoe, which is likely to subject the overshoe to higher loads than those transferred to the straps under normal use. Thus, the straps holding the overshoe to the user""s conventional shoe must be tightened sufficiently to prevent the overshoe from slipping off if the user slips or trips.
Because the overshoe taught in U.S. Pat. No. 3,609,888 is attached only with one strap on each end, and since these straps need to be sufficiently tightened, as noted above, these straps can cause discomfort to the user by causing excessive pressure beneath the strap. For example, the uppers of conventional shoes can be made from a variety of materials. Such materials can include nylon, leather, vinyl, or a combination of any of these and other materials. A strap tightened around the outer periphery of such an upper can cause the upper to wrinkle, thus creating an uncomfortable protrusion within the user""s conventional shoe. Such a protrusion can cause a blister during use.
Another drawback of the type of bowling shoe described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,609,888, is that since the heel cup and toe cup portions are made from a relatively inelastic material, e.g., leather, such an overshoe could not comfortably accommodate a broad range of shoe sizes. For example, FIG. 2 from U.S. Pat. No. 3,609,888 is reproduced herein as FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the bowling overshoe taught in U.S. Pat. No. 3,609,888 includes a heel cup portion 12 and a toe cup portion 14. The heel cup portion 12 includes a generally semicircular side wall 16 sewn to an insole 18 so as to correspond generally to the shape of a conventional shoe. However, the width 20 of the heel cup 12 limits the sizes of conventional shoes which the overshoe 10 can accommodate.
For example, if a conventional shoe placed within the overshoe 10 is too narrow, the heel cup portion 12 will not closely follow the outer contours of the conventional shoe, and thus, may not provide a stable connection between the overshoe 10 and the conventional shoe. Conversely, if the conventional shoe is too large, the heel of the conventional shoe might overlap and extend beyond the insole portion 18 and thus prevent the heel cup portion 12 from providing a tight fit with the conventional shoe. The toe cup portion 14 can experience similar problems.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a bowling overshoe comprises an upper configured to substantially surround an upper of a conventional shoe and constructed of a stretchable material. The overshoe also includes a stretchable insole having a toe and heel area. A first outsole portion is connected to the toe area of the insole and a second outsole portion is connected to the heel area of the insole independently of the first outsole portion. By attaching the first and second outsole portions independently to the insole, and constructing the upper out of a stretchable material, the bowling overshoe according to the present aspect of the invention provides significant advantages.
For example, by constructing the bowling overshoe as noted above, the bowling overshoe can accommodate a greater number of shoe sizes with better comfort and a more secure attachment to a conventional shoe. By constructing the upper of a stretchable material and to substantially surround an upper of a conventional shoe, the upper can stretch and thus accommodate many different shoe shapes that a user may insert into the overshoe. For example, if a user""s conventional shoe includes tassels, lights, running computers, or metal clips in place of conventional eyelets for receiving shoe laces, the stretchable upper can extend over these features and thus be tightened around the user""s conventional shoe. As such, the present overshoe provides more evenly distributed pressure over the conventional shoe upper and thus provides a more stable and comfortable connection between the overshoe and a conventional shoe. Additionally, by attaching the outsole portions independently from one another, the insole of the overshoe can stretch in the longitudinal direction and thus accommodate various lengths of conventional shoes, corresponding to different shoe sizes. Additionally, due to the construction of the upper, the present overshoe can accommodate a number of shoe widths, which correspond to different shoe sizes, without causing wrinkles or slackened portions in the upper.
Preferably, the shoe upper and insole are formed from commercially available neoprene. Additionally, the outsole portions can be formed from commercially available waterproof leather. Thus, the cost of the raw materials for making such an overshoe are far less than the raw materials needed for making a conventional bowling rental shoe, which translates into savings for bowling facility proprietors.
According to yet another aspect of the present invention, a bowling overshoe comprises an upper made from a first resilient material having a first modulus of elasticity and an insole portion made from a second resilient material having a second modulus of elasticity. The second modulus of elasticity is less than the first modulus of elasticity. Additionally, first and second outsole portions are connected to the toe portion of the insole and heel portion of the insole, respectively. By constructing the insole from a material having a modulus of elasticity that is lower than the modulus of elasticity of the material forming the upper, the present overshoe provides several advantages.
For example, as the present overshoe is stretched over a conventional shoe, the upper, which is shaped similarly to a conventional shoe upper, stretches in length and width to accommodate a conventional shoe. However, the insole portion is connected to first and second outsole portions which are independent from each other. Thus, the portion of the insole that can stretch to accommodate different sizes of conventional shoes is limited to the portion of the insole extending between the first and second outsole portions. By constructing the insole portion of a material having a lower modulus of elasticity than the upper, the elongation of the insole portion is more consistent with the elongation of the upper.
In accordance with a further aspects of the present invention, an overshoe comprises a stretchable upper configured to receive an upper of a conventional shoe, a stretchable insole having heel and toe portions, and insole members fixed to the heel and toe portions so as to substantially prevent the heel and toe portions from stretching. Outsole members are bonded to the insole members. As such, the present overshoe provides several advantages.
For example, the technique for attaching conventional outsoles to conventional insoles, such as those used on rental bowling shoes, has long been known. This technique includes a first step of forming a groove along a periphery of the outer surface of a thick outsole. A specialized sewing machine is then used to sew the outsole to the insole, with the stitchings extending within the groove.
By fixing insole members to the heel and toe portions so as to substantially prevent stretching of the heel and toe portions, and by bonding the outsoles to the insoles, the present overshoe avoids the need for the forming a groove in an outsole in using a specialized sewing machine for sewing the outsole to the insole.
Preferably, the insoles are formed from a thin non-stretchable material such as, for example, but without limitation, commercially available nylon. As such, the insoles can be sewn to the outsoles with a conventional sewing machine.
In accordance with yet another aspect of a present invention, an overshoe comprises a stretchable upper configured to substantially surround an upper of a conventional shoe, and an outsole portion configured to be used for bowling. The upper includes at least one fluorescent portion on an outer surface thereof. By including at least fluorescent portion on the outer surface of the upper, the present invention provides several advantages.
For example, because certain bowling facility operators hold events during which visitors bowl in partial darkness, there is increased risk of injury during such an event. Additionally, many bowlers do not own specialized bowling shoes, and thus rely on the supply of rental shoes maintained by bowling facility operators. Thus, by including at least one fluorescent portion on the outer surface of the upper of the present overshoe, a significant number of the bowlers participating in a partial darkness event will have shoes with glowing portions. As such, bowlers are more visible to each other, which thereby reduces the risk of accident or injury during a partial darkness bowling event.
Preferably, the fluorescent portion comprises an ink applied to the stretchable upper. As such, bowling facility operators can choose to have customized messages written in the ink, thus providing additional advertising messages that are visible even during partial darkness bowling events.
Various features of the above noted aspects of the invention can also be interchanged, as will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. In addition, further aspects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description of the preferred embodiments which follow.